BLISS RATING: ★★★
“It took me half my life to find you and I will use the other half to hold onto you…” – lovequotesplus.com
I decided to watch the Bromance trilogy, although the three are not really connected. I happen to be an admirer of the cast in these three stories. The first I watched was the movie completed in 2014. I transported myself back to that time and found the film to be remarkable. While it is not necessary to watch them in totem, I wanted to visualize the entire series for comparative reasons. This movie is a classic and is extremely well done. Simply, it is a story about two guys who happen to become stepbrothers. Golf, played by Teerapat Lohanan (Fluke) is an angry, self-centered person who has become withdrawn and tortured after the passing of his mother. He feels ‘forgotten’ and alone and is driven by the need to draw attention to himself by being the class clown and the troublemaker. Suddenly one day in walks a ‘wife’ for his father and a new ‘brother’ who just about sends Golf over the edge. Bank, played by the remarkable Natouch Siripongthon (Fluke) is a quiet, withdrawn, always optimistic individual who wants nothing more than to please his brother.
Both guys have had very sad and misunderstood lives. But in a sense, Bank knows Golf even better than himself. Initially, Golf does some dastardly things to Bank and Bank tolerates it as if he senses what the outcome would be. Slowly but inexorably Bank begins to break down the barriers that keep Golf in is own little world. Whether that was because he felt sorry for him, or wanted a brother, or was falling in love with him is irrelevant. It just happens and before long, Golf becomes enamored with his ‘brother’ and realizes that he is in love with him as well. While mostly unrequited, you can see the connection, the chemistry, indeed the love that the two had for each other. Unfortunately, the family finds out and become angry and embarrassed by this budding relationship and the father sends Golf away to school. When he finally returns, he thinks that Bank’s feelings have changed, and both start a fight with dire consequences. In the end, it is both uplifting, sad, and profoundly moving. Golf gives himself to Bank in a gesture of adoration. While there are significant sacrifices one can make for love, there are also the small profoundly simply gestures that sometimes overshadow what even the larger ones represent. The rings are one of those moments. The ring really represents the circular, never ending love between two people and the impact that it has on your own soul. This symbol remains with you forever.
This story is deeply, deeply moving. Funny at times. A coming-of-age essay also. It is also profoundly sad reaching the core of one’s inner being. It grabs you and shakes you and tells you clearly that your life will never be the same and a small hole will exist where the heart is. But you still go on. The acting in this series is profoundly moving and is elevated by the supporting characters as well. While this movie may now be ‘older’, it is still relevant today as we all know that families can not and will not accept gay relationships or even recognize love between two persons of the same sex. I cannot say enough positive things about both Flukes in their acting skills. Teerapat’s character of Golf with his volcanic response to life’s challenges is remarkable. And Natouch’s characterization of Bank with his quiet, pensive, ever forlorn look is profoundly moving. This could have been so maudlin but never quite goes there. He was able to show the profound sadness in quiet fortitude and expressions. It is a remarkable performance.
While this is not necessarily essential to watch this with the others. In reality, they are distinct entities but for me they are still all part of the story of two remarkable individuals called Golf and Bank, simply from different perspectives. In that sense, they need to be taken and seen together.
Who really S.T.O.L.E. the movie? This is a tough one as all were remarkable, but I have to give the slight edge to Natouch’s portrayal of Bank. It is not easy to convey vulnerability and yet know you are doing so from a point of strength rather than weakness. It is also not easy to portray such profound sadness yet with the notion that no matter what life must go on and what you had and shared is a part of you. And that is what he portrayed. Given that he was only 18 or so at the time this movie was made (and so was Teerapat), he portrayed such a depthless to his character and we were able to feel it with him was just so moving to me. He is a remarkable actor that was so able to move me to laugh, cry, and yes, even felt his pain. Well done!
2014 — BLISS Rating: ★★★★
MY BROMANCE — 2016 — Thailand
It is simply not fair to compare this BL series with the 2014 movie. While the content is similar and the characters are the same, the similarities end there. It has neither the depth or impact of the movie, but it does have its own strengths and unfortunately a lot of weakness as well. It still revolves around Golf, now played by Patpasit Na Songkhla (Cooper) and Bank, now played by Jirapirom Chaiya (Guide). Only it is 8 years later, and Bank has been living and working in Los Angeles. He is a researcher and working on his master’s degree and most importantly is in a relationship with a guy by the name of Jackson. Before Bank takes off to visit his family in Thailand, Jackson proposes to him and Bank accepts. So, marriage arrangements are going to be made. Meanwhile, Golf has been drifting from one job to another with the most recent being a diver. He is in no relationship and continues to have bitter feelings for his family overall and his father specifically. His father Vut played by Kwantuch Na Takuathung is a soulful individual who over the years has tried to maintain a relationship with his son and who’s health is slowly deteriorating. He is desperately trying to reconcile and amend his relationship with Golf. However, Golf is still feeling wounded and rejected by his family and remains the bitter individual who is quite hurtful at times to others. His negative personality all stems from the death of his mother many years prior. His mother suffered from mental illness, specifically depression, and died from suicide. This deeply affected him, and he is so worried that the same fate awaits him. Thus, he holds on to the old house, which his mother has left half to him. He refuses to sell to help the family and because he wants to inflict as much pain as possible for perceived wrong doings by his family. Bank tries to help him to become the person that he once was. At the same time, no matter how hard Bank tries, he cannot extricate himself from his connection to Golf. Golf knows this and induces and seduces Bank to become lovers again. That simply is how the series ends.
Unfortunately, this story while helping us understand a different reality of Bank and Golf from the movie, missed. They overlapped way too often and too much the past lives of Bank and Golf with the present which got incredibly confusing and distracting. Rather than being a focused story about their love and relationship it became a treatise on a whole lot of issues with nothing ever being resolved. While they should be applauded for tackling and bringing to the forefront a lot of human misery issues, it was just too much to deal with in a single series. Ironically, the last episode is where they should have started and then taken the story from there. They left peoples’ lives and stories hanging. What happened to Jackson? How will Bank deal with that? What about the other characters introduced early on and suddenly drifted away like deadwood? Major issues were touched upon but never really resolved. Why? Too many issues with unresolved conclusions. I liked the issues but if you bring them up, do not leave us hanging in the air with questions. There are just too many issues to list completely so here are a few of them. Golf’s mother dying from suicide because of depression and yet no one dealing with the aftermath of mental illness. A gay teacher is forced to resign even though he did nothing wrong, and everybody was quite aware that he did nothing wrong. But they choose to remain silent because they just did not want to get involved. A student whose mother had Alzheimer. While they did deal with that on some level, it is just such a profound issue for a teenager to deal with by himself. A female student who ‘outs’ certain gay behaviors because she thinks the teacher is after her boyfriend. The early abuse that Golf inflicted on Bank with no consequences for these actions. The major factor that Bank’s real father was abusive and kidnapped him. The fact that issues were going on but ‘no one wanted to get involved’. It goes on and on like this with problem after problem with no real resolution. I realize that all these problems do exist in real life, but with any good story telling, you must be able to tell a story, not just scenarios of stories in the hopes in the end it will all make sense (which it does not).
I cannot say there is bad acting but without a coherent story line or sense of direction and some sight to a logical conclusion, this series became a hot mess. I wanted to care for them, and they did their best to try to keep the story’s cohesiveness. While Guide and Cooper did their best to portray their characters, it was confusing as to who they REALLY were. It seemed obvious that even after all these years, there was still an emotional and physical attraction. For us to believe that, there must be some action that elevates that. Childish bantering and an occasional intense look or hug might be fine for teenagers, but these are now grown men with grown-up emotions, and grown-up behaviors. Deal with it. I do not care how but deal with it! It does not have to be nice, cute, or be happy. It just needs to be realistic. Either jump in bed from the beginning, rebuild what you have lost to lead to a more genuine love connection, or end it and go back to Los Angeles to a person who appears to be in love with you. (By the way, I found the English-speaking portions so adorable and cute. I was not convinced that they know English but simply learned to speak the words to make it sound as if they did. In any case, it was still adorable. I apologize if they are fluent in English; it just did not come across as genuine. It still does not take away from their sweetness).
Who really S.T.O.L.E. the series? While the main actors are good and of course handsome with lots of boyish charm and charisma, who played the part with complete gusto and commitment was Kwantuch Na Takuathung as Golf’s father, Vut. He was brilliant and played the empathetic father with quiet dignity and grace. He at times seemed overwhelmed on how to handle Golf while at other times he was the epitome of what a father should be. When he finds out that he is dying of brain cancer, he deals with it with a poise about him that never feels maudlin or seeking sympathy. He just wants to make things right. He is consistent throughout this series and rather than try to tell Golf what really are the facts, he lets him vent and become angry and bitter towards him in the hope that at some future date, when Golf matures, will finally listen and learn the truth. Bank does help Golf with this and when these moments occur, the story is brilliant. Vut is such a real, genuine, honest, and profoundly complex individual who is a father first, always. He portrays that magnificently. His soulful looks, his quiet voice, his fatherly presence makes this series what it is. He brought real authenticity to this and of all the characters, he was the one most identifiable and consistent. I simply loved his acting. He gave real life to his role.
2016 — BLISS Rating: ★★★★
MY BROMANCE 2: 5 YEARS LATER — 2020 — Thailand
Bleary, ill-defined, and sadly, a mess. I am utterly disappointed and devastated by this promising BL series, that never materialized at least not for the main couple. I loved the original MY BROMANCE as it was done in 2014 just at the beginning of these BL stories burgeoning. That was brilliantly acted, brilliantly produced, and brilliantly told. But something happened that made this particular story fall flat. It is a continuation of the story of Bank, played by Natouch Siripongthon (Fluke) and Golf, played by Teerapat Lohanan (Fluke), both of whom were the originals in the 2014 series. Previously, Golf ‘died’ from brain cancer but in this reality, he was forced by his family to leave Bank, make something of himself (get his degree), and mature. That he did and when he finally announces to the world that he is indeed alive, Bank is thunderstruck and thus begins the pretense to bring back what they once had. What made this so bad, is that we truly never got to know these two as they are now. Yes, Golf had changed and matured and so did Bank and those changes seem irrelevant to the continuation of this story. In actuality, there was very little screen time with these two in it. It is as if their story was used as a filler for trying to develop other love stories. Even when they were on, it was ‘looks’ with lots of musical overlay. I am sorry but Natouch and Teeraat were simply not into these roles. They were wooden, distant, lacked any kind of sincerity, and seemed disinterested in the characters.
They went through the motions but with no feelings and definitely no chemistry. Natouch is one of my absolute most favorite BL stars but this was just minimally acceptable. It is as if there were two different people from the original stars. I just did not buy into their relationship at all. Frankly, when they were not on scene and the story went to other love connections (of which there are many), I was relieved. I just did not care. Let me look at some of the issues with this series:
1. The overall cruelty of Golf’s family and Golf himself in NOT letting Bank know he was alive and well. EVERYONE knew except Bank. And yet, Bank had no reaction to this at all. Perhaps this is a cultural thing, but I wanted, and I think legitimately he had a RIGHT to be angry with everyone. Yet, it was never dealt with at all. Why is there no confrontation as to why this was the case? Why did Golf not tell Bank secretly until he finished his schooling? Why did not one of their mutual friends not tell Bank? Etc., etc. When Bank initially ‘rejects’ Golf, Golf seems incredulous. WHAT? You and your family lied to him, made him suffer in pain, and abused his emotions and you cannot understand that? You do not have the luxury of self-pity here. This was almost unforgivable and should have been dealt with. Yet, Bank accepts this reality as if it did not affect him at all. Ridiculous. Bank had a right to be anger, hurt, frustrated. He needed to feel like he was not made the fool since everyone else knew and he did not. Does not that require some reaction? Some discussion? Some time to process? How do you deal with this? With anger, hurt, withdrawal, or no reaction and let it fester? What is real here? This was simply a bad screenplay. This for me was beyond the pale of understanding.
2. Why did Bank not tell Golf he had a boyfriend for 2 years? You see him spend time with Golf, and you do EXACTLY what Golf did to you. You say NOTHING. If you loved Arm, as you claimed you did, you would have told Golf this from the beginning. Look, I totally understand that you might have feelings, either strongly or perhaps even call it love for Golf, but you moved on. You are not in the past; you are in the present and you are now a full-blown adult. This needed to be dealt with. This was shameful that this yet again presents gay people as unable to move on or only thinking about what they had and not what they have, and not really ‘loving’. I am going to jump from my new into my old without hesitation. How does that help foster the love connection? Here again, a bad screenplay that did not at all deal with who these two were now and an inability to see, think, and feel that gay people do not have strong emotions.
3. The cruelty of what happened to Arm. He finds out about Bank and Golf when he walks in on them kissing. Yet, Bank runs home and asks for forgiveness and he really does love him, and Golf is just a ‘brother’. That is a lie and lies tend to be exposed through one’s own inept actions. So, it does not take long for Arm to realize that Bank’s heart is with someone else. He is the one who separates. While he is not in many scenes, he plays the dutiful companion with dignity and grace and a quiet reserve, yet he is the one that displays the courage and strength to see what is going on and there is no need to try and fight for something that he knows he has lost. The pain and sadness and quiet resignation that he showed on his face (without a lot of dialogue) was profoundly moving and I cried. He was the one that I felt such a closeness to and a connection and could relate to. Bank was cruel for at the very least not telling Arm about what was going on and to say that he needed time to think and process. Or, if he truly loved Arm, this could have been easy. He could have stayed with Arm and thus showed the world that he has moved on and while there might be a special place for Golf in his heart (as his brother or ever his former lover), he now loves Arm as deeply and passionately as he once loved Golf. Here again, it was the lack of understanding of relationships that tripped up this screenplay into just superficiality. I was also dismayed by what happened to Arm in the end. Bank should have lived with the consequences of his actions and had it gnaw at him for a long time rather than have been given a gift of convenience (watch the ending to see why I said this). It was just too convenient.
I could go on and on about what issues in a relationship that could have been dealt with in this series but did not. Instead, they did the feel-good approach and got them together without tackling what the issues really are in this relationship. It was so contrived to me and I just never bought it. If Bank was not in a relationship when Golf came home, then this story might have worked as it was so superficial in its dealings with them together. But they chose to have him involved with another person and they treat all of that so cavalierly as if the only thing that mattered is having Golf and Bank together. That is sad because, while at the end they explained why they made this story, I think it sent ironically the exact opposite message. Gay people really do not love. Or we love like the soup de jour. Or we really do not know love at all. Or we treat people we love with such cavalier attitudes. This series for me was painful to watch.
As to the rest of the series, it simply was a hot mess that meandered with so many different male couples, that I frankly was getting lost. All of them being dealt with sometimes superficially and sometimes with a little bit more thought but none of them effectively. Some ended up sad while others end up on a positive note. I am at a loss as to why so many couples were introduced with no real series appreciation of how connections are formed or developed. Some were cute stories, for sure. But most of them were disconcerting. For example, there is one between Hungley, played by Puwanart Runapnain (Oak) and Mehka, played by Film Worawit. Hungley is an angry typical teenager with the world revolving around him. He asks for Mehka, a swim instructor, to teach him to swim.
They develop a relationship. I am not prudish but in the one scene in which Mehka helps Hungley to bed from being drunk, they have sex and from that point on, they have a relationship. My whole issue with this is, I am not sure that Hungley gave him consent to have sex with full understanding of what that meant and to develop a relationship with someone under 18 seemed like a questionable judgement to me. Here again, it might present gay people in a light where we think that sex with individuals that young (even though that might be in accordance with the age of consent) is somehow right. While it may not be necessarily inappropriate, it may be questionable. The other relationship that is worth mentioning is between Nuefar, played by Hatsawatchon Wongsrisai (Mon) and Tar, played by Worakamon Nokkaew (Kit). Tar is asked to tutor his friend’s adopted brother which he does. Neufar is a troubled young man who feels unwanted and is pretty much a loner and turns to alcohol and sex with men for comfort. One despicable creature really takes advantage of him in the worst possible way. Tar, who seems himself to be a bit lonely, becomes attracted to him even though he is straight. They develop a relationship which unfortunately will not last long as Tar is needing to move away and subsequently develops a relationship with a female co-worker. Nuefar is devastated but as the lessons from most young relationships are learned, begins to see that there is more to life than just putting it out there for one person and slowly allows his adopted family to fulfill some of his need of belonging. What is a bit disconcerting in this relationship as well is the idea that he is a high school student and Tar is older and the relationship while not exactly fiduciary should be close to not developing a relationship with anyone who’s care you are in charge of.
The perception of this becomes questionable. Of course, there are other male relationships that are more peripheral but essentially not germane to anything except to the idea I guess that relationships come from many different directions. There is also another despicable creature as a mentor and judge for contests involving young men in which he pressures and cajoles the most vulnerable into being with him. These people are despicable, and I detest their presence. What is bothersome about this is that it is more of a caricature of an individual than a real individual. While I do not deny that such characters exist, I am sure they are not exclusively with getting young boys but all predators for all different types of vulnerable people.
Who really S.T.O.L.E. the series? This was difficult to choose as there were three leading candidates. One was Arm played by Parinya Angsanan (Kok) who I thought was simply brilliant and very effective. He conveyed such raw emotionality that it was hard not to consider him. The second was Tar, played by Worakamon Nokkaew (Kit). He is such an awesome support actor with an adorable face that always seems to play the forlorn individual that is wise but quiet. He is the soft-spoken but true person who knows how to guide people into making good decisions. He conveys that very well. He does not have a mean bone in his body but seems overwhelmed at times as to who and what he is. But I finally choose Puwanart Runapnain (Oak) who plays Hungley. I chose him because he displayed such youthful exuberance in a magical way. He conveyed the typical gangly teenager with sheer perfection, and he could play a drunk with absolute conviction. Besides being I believe the youngest cast member at 17, he held is own and got deeply involved with his role. He was able to convey his attraction to Mehka with such an innocent and enamored look, that he was simply one of the most believable characters in this series. He played the teenage role (which he is) with such conviction and with a natural beauty. He is incredibly thin but seemed to not have any problem with showing off his swimmer’s body in a speedo. I thought that took guts and courage and I admired his fortitude. He is an outstanding young actor who hopefully will have a great future in acting.
Overall, I know I have harped about this series, but it really was a total disappointment for me. I was so ready to declare Natouch the person who S.T.O.L.E. the series without seeing it because I am so enamored with his acting and his characters. But this was so painful to watch. He seemed strained in even showing the rawest emotions. And there was no chemistry between the two of them which was such a radical departure from their performances in the 2014 movie. It is as if they had ‘moved on’ from these roles. This could have been a series that contributed a great deal to the understanding of lost loves and painful but necessary decisions to make when it comes to who really to love. As Bank said in this series, “Precious love cannot replace precious relationship [connection].” The problem is that I did not see either in this series and it left me empty. The chemistry and connections with some of the other couples were way more interesting and intense than what was shown between Bank and Golf.
2020 — BLISS Rating: ★★+
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